Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Holdings Raised by Cape ANN Savings Bank

Cape ANN Savings Bank lifted its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,893 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials comprises about 2.1% of Cape ANN Savings Bank’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Cape ANN Savings Bank’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $3,615,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Clean Yield Group acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 14th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $217.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 16th. UBS Group dropped their target price on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Applied Materials from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $228.90.

Applied Materials Trading Up 0.4 %

AMAT stock opened at $200.88 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $194.38 and its 200 day moving average is $209.90. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $129.21 and a 12-month high of $255.89. The stock has a market cap of $166.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.09, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a current ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.02 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.99% and a net margin of 27.74%. The firm had revenue of $6.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.68 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.90 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.39%.

About Applied Materials

Applied Materials, Inc engages in the provision of manufacturing equipment, services, and software to the semiconductor, display, and related industries. The company operates through three segments: Semiconductor Systems, Applied Global Services, and Display and Adjacent Markets. The Semiconductor Systems segment develops, manufactures, and sells various manufacturing equipment that is used to fabricate semiconductor chips or integrated circuits.